Pan-fried duck with berry sauce and a crisp thyme and rosemary potato bake

Serves 4

For the potatoes

— butter, for greasing — 2kg Maris Piper

potatoes, peeled

— 2 garlic cloves, crushed — leaves from 2 sprigs rosemary, finely chopped, plus extra to finish

— leaves from 2 sprigs thyme, finely chopped, plus extra to finish — 100ml olive oil, plus

a little extra to drizzle

For the duck and sauce — 4 duck breasts, skin on — 250ml red wine — 250ml chicken stock — 150g mixed raspberries and blackberries (fresh or frozen, depending on the season) — 1 tsp honey — knob of butter

(optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C/ gas mark 4. Grease four individual ovenproof dishes with butter.

Slice the potatoes as thinly as possibly with a sharp knife or, even better, on a mandolin.

Combine the garlic, rosemary and thyme with the olive oil in a large bowl. Add the sliced potatoes, season well, and turn them gently with your hands to coat.

Layer the potato slices in the baking dishes, so that they overlap and are packed in tightly. Drizzle a little more oil over the top of each dish and sprinkle with rock salt and pepper.

Cover with foil and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender throughout, then remove the foil and scatter the tops with some chopped herbs. Return to the oven and cook for a further 10-15 minutes, until the tops are golden and crisp.

While the potatoes are in the oven, prepare the duck breasts. Using a sharp knife, score the skin in diagonal lines then season them all over with salt and pepper.

Place the breasts skin-side down in an ovenproof frying pan over a medium-high heat and cook for 10-12 minutes, so the skin turns crispy and golden brown. If you like, you can carefully drain the duck fat out of the pan as the meat cooks.

To make the berry sauce, heat the wine in a saucepan until it has reduced by half. Add the stock and reduce by half again, then stir in the mixed berries and honey, breaking down the fruit with the back of a spoon. A knob of butter, if you like, will help to bring it together. Shimmy the pan to amalgamate.

Once the duck skin has coloured and crisped up, turn the breasts over and place the pan in the oven for 2-3 minutes, depending on how pink you like your meat, then remove to a warm place, cover with foil and leave to rest for five minutes.

Slice the duck breasts on the diagonal and serve with the sauce drizzled over the top and the potatoes on the side. This is delicious with seasonal greens.